PRESS DIGEST - New York Times business - Nov 21

Nov 21 (Reuters) - The following were the top stories in
The New York Times on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these
stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* The U.S. Federal Reserve expects economic growth to slow
sharply next year, and policy makers there are worried that
even this forecast may prove too optimistic, according to an
assessment that the central bank released.

* Losses at Freddie Mac FRE.N underscored the continuing
turmoil in the housing industry. The big mortgage finance
company posted a $2 billion loss for the third quarter and
warned that it might not have enough capital on hand to cover
the mandatory reserves for its mortgage commitments.

* Merck & Co Inc (MRK.N: Cotización) and Schering-Plough Corp SGP.N
said they would publish only a portion of the results from a
long-awaited trial of their cholesterol-lowering drugs Zetia
and Vytorin.

* BlackRock Inc (BLK.N: Cotización), the big investment firm, is
expected to be the main asset manager for a $75 billion fund
being created by three large banks to help shore up the market
for asset-backed securities.

* A German court ruled that T-Mobile, which won an
exclusive deal to sell Apple Inc's (AAPL.O: Cotización) coveted iPhone in
Germany, must offer the iPhone to everyone, even without the
24-month contract that it had required for buyers of the phone.
T-Mobile is appealing the ruling.

* Sixteen days into a work stoppage, Hollywood
screenwriters and their employers are scheduled to talk on
Monday for the first time since Nov. 4. A rapid settlement
would jump-start the entertainment industry.

* In a setback for American producers fighting Chinese
imports, a federal trade panel ruled against the American
glossy paper industry's request for tariffs on imported Chinese
paper. The decision threw out duties that had been authorized
by the Bush administration early this year.

* Airlines are fond of saying that they have a success rate
of more than 99 percent in getting luggage to its destination
along with its owner. Despite increased efforts by the major
airlines, the baggage problem is getting worse, and by the end
of the year, close to five million travelers will have been
stuck scratching their heads at the luggage carousel.

* On the back of record profit so far this year, Goldman
Sachs Group Inc (GS.N: Cotización) is starting a donor-driven philanthropy
fund that aims to reach $1 billion over the next few years.